Okay, That New D&D ‘Secret Level’ Clip Looks Pretty Rad
A new clip for the D&D episode of Secret Level gives us a look at possibly one of the best representations of the Cult of Tiamat.
Secret Level, the Amazon Prime anthology series about video games (and Warhammer and D&D, for some reason), has been a bit of a mixed bag. But a new clip from the D&D Secret Level looks very promising. And all because of a single cool moment that features the Queen of Dragons herself, Tiamat.
The new D&D Secret Level clip is worth watching just for the sick inspiration. I have no idea if the episode is any good—though I do believe it’s out now—but even this minute-long clip has me feeling hyped for my next adventure, uncanny valley gnomes aside.
New D&D Secret Level Clip Shows Just How Villainous The Cult Of Tiamat Can Be
In this new clip, we are treated to the middle of an adventure. A tattooed man awakens in unfamiliar surroundings and is greeted by the adventuring party from the earlier clip. Only now, we learn that this man was once a prisoner of the Cult of Tiamat. And we get a glimpse of a pretty typical D&D party. This whole bit from the trailer feels like it was maybe ripped from a writer or producer’s home game.
We get to meet the party which includes a cool Dwarf Monk, and are treated to an animated sequence about on par with one of the good cutscenes from a Diablo or later World of Warcraft cinematic. You can practically hear Liam O’Brien warning us that we are not prepared.
It turns out this prisoner was marked for sacrifice and was likely on the way to something called the Well of Dragons. And as we start hearing about Tiamat, there are ominous whispers. Terrible rumbling. You know, the whole nine yards. But what really makes this clip stand out is how the cult prisoner’s reality starts to break down. Tiamat is not just coming; she’s present.
So, the prisoner does what anyone would do.
Only it turns out he stabbed the Goliath instead. Here, we get to the most D&D part of the clip. Because he’s just embedded a blade basically to the hilt into a Goliath, who just… doesn’t care? Yeah, that tracks for D&D.
It’s a dagger, which only does 1d4 + Strength or Dexterity modifier, which on this guy is +1 AT BEST. So that’s 3 hit points. 5 if he got really lucky. Maybe 10 if you call it a crit. But that’s hardly enough to notice. Barely worth writing down.
It’s like that scene in the second Dungeons & Dragons movie, Wrath of the Dragon God, in which a Cleric decides to chop a tree down with a warhammer. You can feel the game mechanics of D&D rubbing up against the narrative as it unfolds. And that, truly, is where D&D comes to life. Because yeah, who cares if you try and cut someone’s throat with a dagger, or stab them in the heart, it’s not enough damage to kill anyone. The trailer seems to live by those rules.
Happy adventuring!
